Roundup of Recent Science Milestones, 2007

From a leopard species discovered to the Airbus A380

by Liz Olson and Beth Rowen

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Leopard Species Discovered

Imagine spending your entire life being confused with an entirely
different species. That’s what happened to the clouded leopard of
Borneo and Sumatra. The animal, the biggest predator on Borneo, was long
assumed to be the same species as the clouded leopard native to mainland
Southeast Asia. Talk about an identity crisis!

Forty Differences Between Species

In March
2007, scientists at the U.S. National Cancer Institute announced that
genetic testing had determined that there are about 40 differences between
the two species. For example, the clouded leopard of Borneo and Sumatra has
darker fur and smaller cloud markings than the mainland leopard. The spots
inside the “clouds” on the island clouded leopard are more
distinct than those on the mainland animal. The differences between the
cousins are as marked as those between lions, tigers, and
jaguars.

“Who said a leopard can never change its spots? For
over a hundred years we have been looking at this animal and never realized
it was unique,” said Carter S. Roberts, president and CEO of the World
Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Where in the world is
Borneo?

According to the WWF, between 5,000 and 11,000 clouded
leopards live on Borneo and another 3,000 to 7,000 inhabit Sumatra. Borneo
is the third-largest island in the world. About two-thirds of Borneo is part
of Indonesia; the rest is shared by Malaysia and Brunei. Sumatra is an
Indonesian island.

Most scientists agree that there are about 1
million species of animals on Earth. An estimated 10,000 species of animals
are discovered each year. In fact, in 2006 alone 30 unique species of fish,
two species of tree frogs, three species of trees, and 16 ginger species
were discovered in the Heart of Borneo, a rainforest that’s about as
big as Kansas.

Corals

Since scientists
discovered that corals reproduce by synchronous spawning in 1981, they have
been searching for its catalyst. In October 2007, Australian, Israeli, and
American scientists discovered the trigger for the mysterious procreation
habits of coral.

Corals reproduce both sexually and asexually, and
each individual coral, called a polyp, may reproduce both ways within its
lifetime. Coral live in colonies that may consist of one or both
sexes.

At least a third of corals in the Great Barrier Reef reproduce
by synchronous spawning, a process in which the eggs and sperm are released
into the water at the same time. Eventually the sperm and eggs merge
together and create embryonic corals that sink to the ocean floor, and, if
conditions are right, form new colonies. Synchronous spawning is dependent
on the time of year, water temperature, and tidal and lunar cycles. Spawning
happens in the spring during the third through six nights following a full
moon, layering the sea so completely with eggs that they are visible to the
human eye.

Until 1981, corals were thought to be primitive creatures
without a brain or eyes and knew nothing of their environment. Graduate
students at James Cook University changed that thinking when they discovered
a mass spawning in the Great Barrier Reef. Over the last 25 years, the
spawning rituals have been observed by scuba divers and scientists, and
documented on PBS by photographer Al Giddings.

Mystery Solved

Corals have primitive
photoreceptors, idea discovery first introduced by Israeli scientist, Dr.
Oren Levy. In October 2007, scientists discovered that these photoreceptors
have photosensitive chemicals that respond to moonlight like human lovers to
each other. The photoreceptor response to the Moon triggers the largest
spawning event on Earth. The Moon functions like a clock for corals,
alerting them when to release sperm and eggs. The discovery is a big step
forward for coral researchers and also sheds light on evolutionary
questions. Corals emerged over 500 million years ago, which means we now
know light receptors evolved much earlier in the development of animals than
was previously thought.

Stem Cells

In
November 2007, scientists reported that they could use human skin cells to
create embryonic stem cells. Stem cells have the remarkable ability to grow
indefinitely, serving as a sort of repair system for the body. They can
potentially divide without limit into any one of the 220 types of cells in
the body to replace other cells.

The discovery could mean an unlimited
supply of stem cells without embryonic destruction, which would eliminate
the ethical controversy and limited funds for research. With ethical
problems out of the way, more resources will become available for stem cell
research.

Generating stem cells could lead to new disease treatments
by taking skin cells from a person with an illness and generating more stem
cells that could be observed from the earliest stages of development. By
watching a disease as it develops, scientists could potentially design drugs
to not only treat it but also prevent it.

With stem cells produced
from a patient’s own skin cells, it is possible to create tissue that
would not be rejected by their immune system―the same result would
require cloning with embryonic stem cells.

Airbus A380

Developed as the most spacious
passenger aircraft to date, Airbus A380 took off for the first time in 2007.
With 6,460 square feet of floor space, two floors, and a 262-foot wingspan,
the 560-ton aircraft is the largest passenger aircraft ever
built.

Designers of the A380 set out to make the plane as
environmentally sound and efficient as possible. The A380 optimizes energy
and water consumption and produces little waste and emissions. The jumbo
Airbus A380 burns 17% less fuel per seat than a Boeing 747-400.

The Features

Singapore Airline’s A380 is
powered by four Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines. There are 471 seats and 12
private suites in the front half of the plane’s lower deck. The space,
which maximizes privacy, was designed by Jean-Jacques Coste, a French yacht
designer. The suites have adjustable leather seats and separate beds that
fold out to a full-size mattress with linens designed by Givenchy. There are
60 business-class seats on the upper deck, and 399 economy-class seats
throughout the back half of the upper and lower decks of the plane. For
entertainment, passengers have LCD video screens that play a selection of
100 movies and 180 television channels. In addition, passengers have access
to USB ports and laptop computer accessibility.

The A380 was unveiled
in Toulouse, France, on October 15, 2007. Singapore Airlines carried its
first paying A380 passengers on Oct. 25, 2007, on a special flight from
Singapore to Sydney. It is the first airline to fly the A380 on regular
scheduled service. A380 is can take off and land at 60 major airports
throughout the world.